Must-Read Books

Frank Zappa was fond of saying, “So many books, so little time.” If you are a young professional aspiring to lead and impact organizations, you may resonate with this statement. I’d like to introduce you to top books that are tested and provide a plethora of takeaways that will catapult you into a more effective young professional. If you don’t know what books to read, this is an awesome list to start with.

Literally thousands of business books are published each year, each with the potential to promote change and enlighten the way people think about business. 800-CEO-Read began recognizing these efforts in 2007 with the 800-CEO-READ Business Book Awards, highlighting the best works in a number of categories. Each book is judged on the originality and applicability of its ideas and the quality of its content. Here’s the top books awarded in 2o13!

Steve Coll’s case study detailing the extraordinary operation of ExxonMobil is an impartial peek into a world that, for most, is and always will be as opaque as the dense black matter they deal in. Readers are privy to a wealth of insider stories, and along the way Coll’s narrative manages to impart some of the worldly wisdom that helps the corporation stay so successful. There’s nothing small about Private Empire: big money, big oil, big drama, 700 pages. Coll’s austere narrative is the most modest element present. But the publication of Private Empire could not be timelier; one can’t resist wondering how the most consistently profitable corporation in the U.S. will transform and be transformed by the changing energy market.

Small business guru John Jantsch knows the importance of personal commitment, but from owning his own business and studying others, he knows that it’s just as important to generate commitment to your business, to your ideas and values, your story, your products and services, in others— particularly in your employees and customers, but also in the businesses you partner with. If you can set a clear purpose and build a business that generates commitment to it in others, then you can let go of the controls and watch as your business seemingly runs itself.

Dropping his usual parable style of writing, Lencioni unleashes a direct, non-fictfiction book that cuts through the important yet rarely addressed issue of interpersonal barriers within organizations. By deconstructing these barriers (and Lencioni shows us how), we can reach organizational health, which, according to the book, trumps everything else in business. We agree.

With the emergence of sites such as Amazon, YELP, Expedia, and Groupon, people think that we no longer need to sell or be sold to—that these electronic resources can help us find everything that we are looking for on our own. In To Sell is Human, Dan Pink not only demonstrates just how wrong this view is, but shows us that there is a new approach to moving people that involves three very human qualities and three surprising skills. Pink’s in-depth study offers a fresh, perceptive, and—most importantly—practical look at the art and science of selling, and his insightful observations on sales will transform how you think about what you do at work, at school, and at home.

This book is not about getting rich, and it’s not about being on the “leading edge.” It’s just a very well written guide to independence via entrepreneurship. Guillebeau offers insights on how to break away from the conventional workforce, but he augments his guidance with very relatable anecdotes and case studies that entertain, excite, and educate. The $100 Startup does offer cases in which people have made quite a bit of money, but the goal of the book is always to teach readers how to be self-supporting. This is the everyman’s guide to entrepreneurship.

Career advice of the “Do what you love” variety is usually followed up with a “bust out of your cubicle, sacrifice all, and follow your passion” anecdote of success. It’s the kind of advice that gets people who aren’t excited about their work to get excited about, well, doing anything but what they are doing. Cal Newport takes a different angle to finding fulfilling work, advising instead that passion is an unreliable advisor, and people actually long for and are fulfilled by becoming really, really good at something. Newport’s advocacy of “using the craftsman mindset to generate fantastic livelihoods” offers a refreshing alternative route to finding work you love.

The term “creative” often gets applied to a specific type of person. Godin shows us why that is wrong, how each of us can better understand what we are capable of, and what a huge resource of innovation that understanding can offer. Before addressing any challenge, we first must address ourselves. Godin shows us the way.

Financial Capitalism has a rather well deserved black eye coming out of a global economic crisis largely of its creation. Robert J. Shiller makes no apologies for the industry or those in it, but takes a longer view showing how financial innovation has advanced human goals and agency throughout history and can still be a force of good in society. He very adeptly and academically lays out the roles and responsibilities of the individuals within finance, and the role of finance within the larger society. Shiller shows how, instead of demonizing finance, we could be doing our best to democratize it. Rather than a more profound anger, he provides a deeper understanding and defines solutions to the current problems in the system.